The concept of local SEO may still be alien to some, but it is fast becoming an essential component for all businesses, online and offline. In particular, brands that seek long term search engine success.
So what exactly is local SEO?
This is the type of search engine optimization that is focused on providing relevant results to a user based on their current location. And this is a practice that has seen a sudden rise thanks to the increase in smartphone usage, combined with improved connectivity.
And although it has a lot of similarities with traditional SEO, there are some fundamental differences.
Care for some statistics?
Google recently revealed that one in three mobile queries in the United States are now local. Additionally 95% of mobile users look up local information on their phones. It goes without saying that this is one area of search that is set to become more and more prevalent in the years to come.
So how do you optimize for local search?
Luckily, Google have set up things that will help you get started. Google Places for Business, and Google+ Local combined with some simple on-page local SEO provide the perfect start towards optimizing your online presence for local searches.
Plus there is no shortage of online tools to analyze your local SEO rankings.
We will be going through all this in detail in subsequent articles on how to optimize your websites for local SEO, along with best practices, dos and don’ts.